We all heard about the Lewis and Clark expedition in school, right? We learned that President Thomas Jefferson dispatched the Corps of Discovery in 1804 on a journey through the newly acquired Louisiana Territory. They were ordered to map the terrain, to befriend the Native peoples they encountered, to document and collect new animals and plants, and to search for an all-water Northwest Passage to the Pacific Ocean.
But we unearthed some little-known facts about the expedition that we bet you didn’t learn in school. Take our little quiz to test your knowledge and wow your friends at the next Trivia Night.
While serving as a young army officer in 1795, a drunk Meriwether Lewis was court-martialed for allegedly challenging a fellow officer to a duel. Though he was found not guilty, he was transferred to a different rifle company to avoid future disputes. His new commander turned out to be – you guessed it – William Clark.
Scroll down and click page 2 for the next question.
During harsh winter conditions, most of us do our utmost to avoid driving on icy roads. But not so at Voyageurs National Park, where visitors intentionally drive on ice!
Every winter, park staff members clear snow from parts of Rainy Lake and Kabetogama Lake, creating ice roads that visitors can use. The roads are open to cars and trucks weighing less than 7,000 lbs. (Snowmobiles are not permitted). The speed limit is 30 mph. The roads are typically very wide – up to 60 feet or more – giving vehicles plenty of room to park and spread out.
Voyageurs’ two main ice roads begin at the park’s visitor centers, though the routes vary from year to year. Depending on weather conditions, they are open from early January to mid-March.
The park takes visitors’ safety very seriously. When heavy snow, slush, or thin ice exists, an ice road may be closed or shortened for safety. Specially trained staff test the ice thickness frequently and they post warning signs when the roads are unsafe for travel.
Steam log hauler, 1915
Northern Minnesota ice roads have a long history. Starting in the late 19th century, lumberjacks created ice roads to transport logs efficiently. And truckers carrying other loads commonly took advantage of the frozen lakes.
Why do park visitors use the ice roads today, you ask? Some use them to access cross country ski trails. Others take their kids to a popular sledding hill. Still other visitors drive to their favorite ice fishing spots, where they spend the day waiting at a fishing hole for a bite from below.
Whatever the reason, driving the ice roads is just another unique part of North Woods culture.
Who doesn’t love a birthday? Well, Julia Dent Grant has a milestone birthday this month. America’s 18th First Lady was born 200 years ago – on January 26, 1826. Throughout this year Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site will celebrate this auspicious event with special programs and exhibits that focus on various aspects of her life.
The fifth of seven children, Julia Boggs Dent was born in St. Louis and raised in comfortable surroundings on the 850-acre White Haven plantation. She was an active child who fished, played piano, rode horses, and played in the woods. Many of her early playmates were children of the enslaved who lived on the property. Some of these children would later become her servants.
As a schoolgirl, Julia declared that she would marry “a soldier, a gallant, brave, dashing soldier.” After returning home from boarding school, she met that soldier in Lt. Ulysses S. Grant, a former West Point roommate of Julia’s brother Frederick. When he was stationed at nearby Jefferson Barracks, Ulysses soon became a frequent visitor to White Haven, where he and Julia enjoyed walks and horseback rides. The couple fell in love quickly, and Grant proposed marriage on the front porch of White Haven in the spring of 1844. Because of his military service, however, they had to wait until 1848 to marry.
Neither set of parents was enthusiastic about the match – Julia’s were worried about Grant’s earning potential, while his parents objected to the Dents’ ownership of enslaved workers. However, the couple seemed deeply attached to one another and remained so throughout their 37-year marriage. Their four children were born between 1850 and 1858.
When Ulysses’ military career took him to remote locations, Julia did not accompany him. He suffered from loneliness and eventually resigned from the Army, returning to White Haven in 1854 to try his hand at farming. Julia considered herself “a splendid farmer’s wife,” raising chickens and even churning butter, though most of the daily chores were left to the enslaved laborers.
The Civil War dramatically altered the Grants’ lives. In 1861 Ulysses left to serve in the Union army, and his responsibilities kept him away from home for most of the war. Letters helped ease the pain of separation, and Julia frequently traveled to her husband’s encampments, both alone and with the children. For a close-up look at the couple’s intimate relationship, check out A Thousand Kisses, a short video that JNPA produced on behalf of the historic site.
When Grant was elected President in 1869, Julia became a trusted confidant to her husband and often participated in presidential matters. She attended Senate hearings, read through Grant’s mail, and met with cabinet members, senators, justices, and diplomats. She apparently enjoyed her role as hostess to the nation and brought a home-like atmosphere to the White House.
Grant succumbed to throat cancer in 1885, but the profits from publication of his memoirs left Julia a wealthy woman. (Pick up your copy of his memoirs at the park or from our online store.) For the next 17 years, she worked to sustain the memory of her beloved husband. She died in 1902.
Those interested in learning more about Julia are invited to attend Julia Dent Grant – Diplomat, a special lecture at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site on Saturday January 24. The presentation will trace Julia‘s life from her childhood when she interceded with her father on behalf of the White Haven enslaved to her widowhood when she befriended Varina Davis, wife of Confederate President Jefferson Davis. It will also focus on Julia Dent Grant’s role as a diplomat and unofficial ambassador. The program is free but call 314-842-1867 ext. 230 for reservations.
Winter in Minnesota – what can there possibly be to do? PLENTY, if you’re up for the fun outdoor activities available at Mississippi National River and Recreation Area! Hardy souls who are willing to brave the snow and low temperatures have a range of pursuits to choose from throughout the park’s 72-mile corridor.
For wildlife lovers, there’s no shortage of opportunities to see eagles roosting in trees or fishing for prey along the Mississippi River, especially below Lock and Dam 2 near Hastings, MN. Observation platforms make bird-watching easy. You can also spot a variety of waterfowl that tend to congregate in open waters below the river dams, including the elegant tundra swan.
Of course, there’s always a bracing hike in the snow, either by taking advantage of groomed paths or by striking out across the untouched landscape. The park also serves as a vast winter playground for snowshoers.
Or how about a little ice fishing, a quintessential Minnesota sport? Both adults and kids can sign up for one of the park’s ice fishing workshops, where they’ll learn how to drill a hole through the ice, handle the equipment, and haul up the catch. Among the fish they might catch are sunfish, northern pike, crappies, and largemouth bass.
Experienced ice anglers and National Park Service rangers offer instruction, and provide poles, tackle, and bait. Participants can even warm up in a heated shelter or peer into the mysterious under-ice world through an underwater camera and learn about the challenging conditions faced by life beneath the ice. Of course, safety is a priority, so the park staff always checks the ice thickness before each event.
No matter where you wander this winter, be sure to make time to enjoy the outdoors. And remember, our national parks are waiting for you.
The National Park Service is charged with preserving our nation’s history, including millions of original documents, photos, drawings, maps, personal letters, and other important records that chronicle the vital heritage and stories of the American people. And sometimes, the NPS archival collections even include some lighthearted mementos from our shared past.
Case in point: this holiday card from 1949. It shows a three-year-old Billy Blythe standing at his family’s fireplace. Why is this worth saving, you might ask? Because Billy (later William Jefferson Clinton) grew up to become the 42nd President of the United States.
Naturally, no one in the Blythe family knew that young Bill would eventually grow up to be President…or did they? His maternal grandmother Edith Cassidy prophetically wrote to a friend about a present she and her husband were planning to give her grandson:
Replica of Billy’s roll top desk in the Birthplace Home
Sometimes a nostalgic look at the past helps us put the present in perspective. So consider these quaint holiday messages from 1949 as our way of wishing you a
Most of us probably assume that Christmas Day has always been a holiday in the U.S., even during colonial days. Not so – it wasn’t until 1870 that December 25 was proclaimed a national holiday. And we have President Ulysses S. Grant to thank for that official declaration.
Early Americans’ observance of Christmas depended on where you lived. The Dutch colonists in New York celebrated the day, as did the British in Virginia. But many Puritans in New England looked upon Christmas as a pagan festival; in many communities, including Boston, it was actually a crime to celebrate on Dec. 25. The strict and pious Puritans disapproved of the drinking, feasting, and dancing associated with Christmas, regarding it instead as a muted, solemn affair more appropriate for church services and praying.
1659 public notice banning Christmas celebrations in Boston
In the early 1800s, Christmas became increasingly popular in the South, and newly arrived European immigrants in New England managed to lift the local bans on celebrating the holiday. A number of states (beginning with Louisiana in 1830) declared Dec. 25 a holiday. Families started sending Christmas cards, decorating fir trees, and preparing festive meals.
Early American Christmas card, 1850
During the Civil War, soldiers celebrated by decorating their camp trees and singing carols. During the first year of the war President Lincoln and his family observed the day by holding a Christmas party at the White House.
Thomas Nast illustration of Abraham Lincoln welcoming Confederates to Christmas dinner, 1864
It wasn’t long before business leaders became frustrated with the patchwork holiday celebrations that varied state by state, interrupting their businesses on different days in different places. They encouraged politicians to formalize the Christmas observance nationwide.
In June 1870, President Ulysses S. Grant signed a bill into law establishing Christmas Day and New Years Day, among others, as nationally observed holidays. In addition to appeasing the business community, it was hoped the move would help unify a nation still divided by the Civil War.
To honor Grant’s historic act, Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site has created a special Christmas exhibit in the park’s museum. Artifacts on display include holiday letters from Julia Dent Grant to family members, seasonal political cartoons, and a nutcracker representing Grant. The exhibit will last through early January.
You’ll also want to visit the park at 5:30 Sunday December 14 to experience White Haven by Candlelight. Lights and decorations will adorn the historic house both inside and out, carolers and musicians will entertain guests, and 19th century foods will be on hand. At 7:00, visitors can enjoy a concert by the Buckhhannon Brothers in the park’s theater.
Stuck on what to give friends and family members this holiday season? If any of your loved ones are national parks lovers, history buffs, or outdoors enthusiasts, we’ve got you covered. We offer a wide range of keepsakes and products from our partner parks that are sure to please even the pickiest person on your gift list.
Our national parks are well represented in our ornament collection. We offer two versions honoring Gateway Arch National Park: the 2025 ornament commemorates the re-opening of the Old Courthouse, while our 2026 version features a stunning three-dimensional rendering of the Arch entrance.
A dreamy scene of historic White Haven on a snowy night would be a perfect ornament for fans of Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site.
To honor the groundbreaking desegregation history at Little Rock Central High School National Historic Site, we offer this handsome ornament featuring four layers of cutout wood.
The boyhood home of Bill Clinton is hand painted on our beautifully detailed glass ornament from the President Clinton Birthplace Home National Historic Site, while our 3D wooden ornament from Voyageurs National Park features a more rustic design.
Coffee and tea drinkers on your list would enjoy this attractive pottery mug from Ste. Geneviève National Historical Park.
And for those who’ll be venturing outdoors this winter, how about this cozy hoodie featuring the name of Missouri National Recreational River or this jaunty knitted beanie from Voyageurs?
If you or someone you know is a fan of the iconic Gateway Arch, you’ll want to snap up one of our commemorative items honoring the 60th anniversary of the monument’s completion. These keepsakes are available for only a limited time, so don’t delay!
And finally, let’s not forget the littlest national park fans. We offer a wide range of fun and educational products for kids of all ages, including glow-in-the-dark shirts, books, puzzles, and water bottles. One of our most popular and unique toys is our new Gateway Arch teddy bear that kids can personalize with our washable markers. He’d look adorable under the tree.
To make your holiday shopping easier, you can order all of these products from our online store. Just be sure to get your order in no later than December 17 to make sure your gift arrives before Christmas.
November is Native American Heritage Month, an opportunity to celebrate the traditions, histories, and cultures of Indigenous American communities across the country. What a fitting time to honor the original inhabitants of what is now Voyageurs National Park.
(Courtesy Eli Bennett)
People have occupied the lands in northern Minnesota as far back as 10,000 years ago. Small family groups of Paleo-Indians entered the region as the waters of the vast glacial Lake Agassiz receded. These were nomadic hunter-gatherers who made use of the abundant resources the lakes and forests provided. They followed the migrating game, fished the rivers and lakes, and collected edible and medicinal plants.
Tribal women harvesting wild rice
As time went on, the Native Americans increased their reliance on local wild rice, which once grew in abundance along the lake shores. They particularly valued this nutritious food source because it could be stored for later use during the difficult winters. Because the people didn’t have to travel so often in search of game, they could adopt a somewhat more sedentary lifestyle.
(Courtesy NPS)
It was during this so-called Woodland Period (100 CE to 900 CE) that the Indigenous populations began using ceramic materials to create arrowheads and projectile weapon points. Samples of these tools have been found at hundreds of archeological sites within the park’s boundaries, giving researchers a window into the lives of these long-gone people.
Ojibwe in Minnesota
When Europeans first arrived in the Midwest in the mid-1600s, they encountered several different Indigenous groups living in Minnesota. European settlements on the East Coast had forced some tribes west, including the Chippewa (also called the Ojibwe), the primary American Indian group who wound up occupying present-day Voyageurs National Park. National Park Service archeologists have pieced together the daily lives of the Bois Forte people, the main Chippewa group, who left evidence of their lives from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
The Ojibwe willingly traded with the newly arrived Europeans, both with the settlers and with the French-Canadian “voyageurs” who navigated the area’s waterways in the 1700s and 1800s for the fur trade (and for whom the national park is named). The tribes supplied the newcomers with furs and with vital supplies like food, fish, and canoes.
There was also a significant cultural exchange between the two groups. Many Europeans adopted Native American diets as well as some aspects of their semi-nomadic lifestyle, while both groups sometimes celebrated holidays together.
Structures on the eastern portion of Chief Wooden Frog Island in 1913 (Courtesy NPS)
By the mid-1800s, the Bois Forte Chippewa numbered about 600 to 1,000 people. But contact with Europeans ultimately brought sweeping changes to their society, as the white settlers introduced new lifestyles, ideas, technologies, and even deadly diseases. Treaties in 1854 and 1866 ultimately stripped the Bois Forte of two million acres of their homeland, which was coveted by timber companies. Dams built to facilitate logging had destroyed the vast wild rice beds of the local watershed.
Logging operations in Minnesota, 1895 (Courtesy Library of Congress)
Gradually, the local Ojibwe moved to the Nett Lake reservation. By the 1930s, only a few scattered groups of Bois Forte people lived in the park permanently, though larger numbers returned seasonally for blueberry picking and other harvesting. Despite the decimation of their society, the tribe never warred with the white settlers
Bois Forte canoes on Namakan Lake, possibly hauling blueberries in early 20th century (Courtesy NPS)
Today, it’s hard to find evidence of the Bois Forte Chippewa within Voyageurs National Park; only a few locations bear names that reference the tribe’s presence. And yet, a number of modern Native American nations continue to have connections to the area. The park staff is collaborating with a variety of Tribal governments to better involve them in the stewardship of the park. This past summer, the NPS and the Voyageurs Conservancy hosted a series of workshops to help integrate Tribal knowledge into park management, stewardship, interpretation, and education.
The Gateway Arch is celebrating its 60th anniversary and you’re invited to be part of the celebration! Sixty years ago on October 28, 1965, the final keystone piece was laid at the top of the monument, joining the two curving stainless steel legs of the 630-foot structure. Once that important triangular piece was inserted, the Arch soared into history as a symbol of Thomas Jefferson’s vision of westward expansion. And it took its place as the tallest manmade monument in the U.S.
To commemorate this historic event, starting tomorrow Gateway Arch National Park will host three days of fun – and free! – crafts, musical performances, and activities. (The park has temporarily reopened until November 2 despite the government shutdown.)
Highlights include:
Visits from some of the Arch builders, men who helped construct the Arch 60 years ago, who will autograph posters for visitors and reminisce about their contributions to the building of the monument
A fireworks display under the Arch
A performance by the Marching Eagles band from Columbia (IL) High School
Performances by the St. Louis Arches, the high-flying acrobats from Circus Harmony
Children’s craft activities, including building the “Arch” with giant blocks, getting a (washable) Arch tattoo, posing as an Arch builder or park ranger, and signing a giant birthday card.
A visit by St. Louis Cardinals mascot Fredbird, as well as other local team mascots.
And for the lucky ones who purchase a ticket on the Tram Ride to the Top on October 28, you’ll become an exclusive member of the Tram Ride to the Top Club, entitling you to a special certificate. We highly recommend purchasing your tickets in advance as they are expected to sell out.
It’s not often we get to commemorate a milestone anniversary of the completion of one of the world’s most iconic monuments. JNPA is proud to have led the collaborative private effort to temporarily reopen Gateway Arch National Park even in the face of the current government shutdown, enabling this birthday celebration to take place. We hope visitors take this opportunity to visit the Arch and Old Courthouse while it remains open through November 2.
If you can’t stop by for a visit, you can still honor the Arch anniversary with one of our commemorative 60th anniversary products, available from our online store. Show your love for the Arch and help support your favorite park!
Many of our U.S. presidents were accomplished horsemen. George Washington was known as the “finest horseman of his age;” Thomas Jefferson rode nearly every day until late in life; Andrew Jackson bred and raced horses, stabling several at the White House; and Zachary Taylor grazed his beloved warhorse on the White House lawn. But Ulysses S. Grant is considered by many to be the most skilled horseman to ever occupy the Oval Office.
Even as a small boy, Grant’s connection with horses was obvious. There are numerous stories of young Ulysses breaking in horses nobody else could ride and doing daredevil stunts on horseback. By age five, he was an accomplished and daring rider, known for standing on one leg while maintaining his balance at a gallop. His mother was heard to say, “Horses seem to understand Ulysses.”
Throughout adulthood, Grant continued to ride, train, and care for horses. For him, riding was more than a pastime – it was a form of discipline and excellence. When he attended West Point, his riding abilities were legendary. Fellow cadet James Longstreet described Grant’s skills: “In horsemanship…he was noted as the most proficient in the Academy. In fact, rider and horse held together like the fabled centaur.”
During the Civil War, riding was Grant’s preferred means of transportation since he found it a useful way to scout the terrain. His most famous horse, Cincinnati, was given to him as a gift after the Battle of Chattanooga and quickly became his favorite. (The horse was the son of Lexington, at one time the fastest four-mile thoroughbred in the country.) Cincinnati was a reliable warhorse, remaining even tempered during the fiercest of battles, and Grant continued to own him until the horse’s death of old age.
Courtesy NPS.
After the war, Grant turned to horse breeding. In 1866 he bought the 860-acre White Haven estate outside St. Louis from his wife’s family, primarily to breed and raise horses. To do this, he needed to convert the bulk of the land from fruits and vegetables to grass and hay to provide feed for the horses. He wrote his caretaker: “I want to get all the ground in grass as soon as it can be got rich enough, except what will be in fruit.”
Original stable at White Haven.
In 1871, he also designed and built a large stable that could accommodate 25 horses, including his beloved trotters, thoroughbreds, and Morgans. Today, the stable remains standing and serves as the museum at Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site.
Grant’s breeding farm produced a number of very fine horses, which in 1873 were valued at $25,000 ($675,000 in today’s dollars). And yet the operation was barely turning a profit. Grant decided to shut down the farm and put its resources to auction in 1875. He lost the farm when he was swindled by a New York City business partner in 1884.
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